1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a self-unloading vehicle and, more particularly, to a portable fertilizer tender with a selectively adjustable auger tube.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Among the devices used to transport granular fertilizer from a barn or warehouse to spreaders or to the field for storage is a truckmounted hopper with an associated discharge auger tube and auger contained therein that extend rearwardly and are upwardly inclined. The height of such an auger tube must be sufficient to reach over the sides of field spreaders, some of which are elevated a substantial distance from the ground. Fertilizer tenders using either a fixed auger tube or a folding auger tube are well-known in the field; however, neither type of device offers entirely satisfactory performance. Fixed auger devices may exceed the lawful height established for vehicles driven on highways and, occasionally, are too high to gain access to barns or warehouses. The folding auger tube employs a hinge several feet from the top end, which allows the top section of the auger tube to fold down or to the side. A set of drive pins and a wooden bushing are utilized in the hinge between the two sections of the auger screw. These pins are under constant stress and frequently bend or wear out. The bushing, which is used to keep the auger screw centered in the auger tube, is subject to excessive wear because of the continual flow of fertilizer in the auger tube. In addition, if a winch and cable assembly is employed to erect the auger tube, the cable tends to weaken, and thus become a maintenance problem, from the strain exerted on it by the weight of the auger screw and tube.